If you ask me, orange peel powder is one of the most underused kitchen ingredient. It adds a scrumptious, bright burst of aromatic citrus to everything from baked goods and desserts to salad dressings, tea, and a whole lot more.
Instead of paying too much for old, bland versions at the grocery store, make a fresh batch yourself for next to no actual time and effort. It’s easier than you think, and with this handy guide I will show you how.
Ingredients and Supplies
Oranges: fresh, preferably pesticide-free organic oranges. If using medium oranges, you’ll need four or five to harvest enough skin to make a good batch of orange powder.
Peeler: a fine, sharp fruit peeler will make your life a whole lot easier because it will harvest just the aromatic oil- and nutrient-packed orange outer skin from the fruit itself. Compared to peeling it with a knife or prying it apart with your fingers, you’ll have a lot less pith to contend with.
Food Dehydrator or Oven: a food dehydrator works best, but if your oven will go low, and I mean really low like 150°F, you can use that.
Baking Sheet: if using an oven, you’ll need a baking sheet large enough to spread all the peels out on.
Parchment Paper: likewise, this is only needed if you’re using an oven. If you don’t have parchment paper, you can use a silicone baking liner.
Food Processor: for turning the dried peels into powder.
Glass Storage Jar: for storing your homemade orange powder. Glass works best to preserve the delicate flavor and aroma.
Instructions
Step 1: Wash and dry oranges thoroughly. Wherever you got your oranges from, take the time to thoroughly wash them with water and, if you have it, your favorite produce wash. Dry them off thoroughly with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel.
Step 2: Peel orange skins into strips. Grab your peeler or knife and shave off just the outermost skin of the oranges. It doesn’t need to be a continuous piece, as strips that are anywhere from 3 to 5 inches long will work just fine. Again, the idea is to leave all of the pith behind because it can make your powder bitter.
Step 3: Dehydrate peels. Lay out the strips in a single layer with space between each on your parchment paper-lined baking sheet or on your food dehydrator trays. Make sure none are overlapping and that air can circulate between each of them.
Pop the baking sheet into your oven set at 150°F / 65 ºC for about an hour. In your food dehydrator it might take 3 to 4 hours at a lower temperature, but the results tend to be better. You’ll know the peels are done when they darken, shrivel up, and snap cleanly instead of bending when you try to bend them.
Step 4: Grind peels in food processor. Once the peels are finished, bring them out and set them aside so they can cool down to room temperature, around 45 minutes. Then, working in batches, transfer a handful of the dried peels into your food processor and pulse until they are rendered into a fine powder.
Step 5: Store powder in glass jar. Transfer the processed powder into a clean and completely dry glass jar for storage. Keep it in a cool, dry place that is protected from direct sunlight. Your orange powder will maintain excellent flavor for around 6 months.
Done! You are all set. Congratulations on making your first batch of flavorful homemade orange peel powder.
Tim is a farm boy with vast experience on homesteads, and with survival and prepping. He lives a self-reliant lifestyle along with his aging mother in a quiet and very conservative little town in Ohio. He teaches folks about security, prepping and self-sufficiency not just through his witty writing, but also in person.
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